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Happy Mother’s Day!

Happy Mother’s Day to the wonderful moms everywhere! It’s not an easy job, but it’s the most important and rewarding job you’ll ever have! Enjoy these special quotes about mothers from QuoteGarden. Woman in the home has not yet lost her dignity, in spite of Mother’s Day, with its offensive implication that our love needs… [Continue Reading]

Dear TIME: Are you LAME enough?

The new TIME cover, featuring a beautiful blond woman standing upright and breastfeeding her almost-4-year-old son, is creating waves already. Personally, I’m tired of the whole conversation already. And not interested in reading the actual article. And a great fan of Dr. Sears and attachment parenting, for the record. What I did enjoy, however, are… [Continue Reading]

Eating Salmon is Good for Pregnant Women & their Babies

A healthy diet is important for everyone, but even more crucial during pregnancy. Fish is a great choice, and here’s another good reason to add it to your menu: Eating two servings of salmon a week during pregnancy is beneficial both for the mother and child, according to University of Granada researchers (Medical News Today).… [Continue Reading]

Photo Books: The Books Your Baby Will Love Forever

From when I was a kid until now, one of my favorite activities is looking through old family photo albums. Seeing the familiar faces of family and friends, remembering the good times we shared, and laughing over the silly photos we couldn’t bear to throw away (remember a time before digital cameras?!)… it’s a surefire… [Continue Reading]

Maternity Fashions for Spring Under $30!

Social Networkers share the good news: I’m having a baby!

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So what photo did you choose for your Facebook profile? Is it black and white and kind of hard to make out? Do people have trouble telling if you are male or female? Do you think you might be sharing too much information??

Some women are using their ultrasound pictures as their Facebook and MySpace icons. The Sydney Morning Herald calls this “Social networking with a foetal attraction, and describes the reactions of various people.

Some women think it’s a fun way to announce their exciting news and update family and friends of their pregnant status.

Others think that sharing foetal pictures could be oversharing – and worry about what happens if the pregnancy goes wrong.

Some think that it brings people closer to each other when they share their intimate trials and joys. However, many expectant mothers take advantage of privacy filters and other measures so that only designated readers can view the photos.  And some people feel that ultrasounds are too private to share on the world wide web. The sensitivity of the subject matter leads one woman to joke about how inappropriate it is to post pictures of one’s uterus online.

What is your opinion??

Junk Food: Add it to the list of Pregnancy no-no’s

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We all know that smoking and drinking during pregnancy are harmful to the baby, but now researchers say that junk food “may also sow the seeds of heart disease and diabetes in the unborn.”

A new study on rats, who were fed a diet of crisps, cheese, muffins and other processed foods throughout pregnancy and lactation.

The babie were overweight at birth, and even when fed a healthy diet, the junk-food babies had a host of medical problems that lasted beyond adolescence into adulthood.

Problems included raised cholesterol and triglyceride levels (associated with heart disease.) They had unusually high levels of insulin and glucose in the blood (a cause of type-2 diabetes). These rats remained significantly fatter than normal with extra fat around the kidneys (another diabetes risk-factor). The female offspring were particularly prone to obesity, expressing high levels of glucose and the appetite-promoting hormone leptin.

“It seems that a mother’s diet whilst pregnant and breastfeeding is very important for the long-term health of her child,” said Stéphanie Bayol, who led the study. Although living a healthy lifestyle is still important, the study shows that mothers must “eat responsibly” while pregnant.

Grab yourself a peice of fruit and read more about this study here!

Using pregnancy to bond with your partner

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Laila Ali, 7-months pregnant with a baby boy, tells us that pregnancy is not all about the woman; it really should be a bonding time for the mother and father-to-be. Couples should take advantage of this special time, before the arrival of the little one, to enjoy each other’s company.

Although she claims to be no expert on this topic, Laila shares tips from her own pregnancy experience:

Exercize together: Working out together or just taking long walks is a good time to talk and bond with each other. Not only does it make you feel better by releasing endorphins, but exercise can also relieve many pregnancy-related complaints such as back-aches, constipation, blood flow, relieve stress and anxiety, and help you sleep better at night. It will also help you control your weight gain, thus helping you regain your pre-pregnancy body quicker after you give birth.

Massage: When your body aches all over and your feet are particularly sore, make your husband a real partner in the experience. Ok, so maybe this one is really all about you. But really, I’m sure he’s happy to do anything he can to make you more comfortable! In addition to relieving tension, especially back pain, massage has a variety of other benefits. It can improve circulation throughout the body, reduce swelling in the legs and feet, and aids relaxation. As a side benefit, you can also use this time to bond with your husband… unless you’ve already fallen asleep!

Register and Decorate: Although you might think his interest in decorating the nursery or registering for baby gifts minimal, he might enjoy being included in discussing the color scheme and picking out baby clothes (at least sometimes). After all, let’s hope he’ll be spending lots of time in baby’s room too! And if he doesn’t have an opinion about crib sheets, maybe he’d like to test-drive a few rocking chairs.

Baby-moon: Honeymoons are nice, but the newest vacation is a baby-moon. You’ll have to avoid the hot tubs and river rafting adventures, but a chance to get away together (even if you don’t go far from home) will be a memorable experience. Let’s face it, once baby arrives, your lives will be changed forever and it that couple bonding time will be much harder to orchestrate.

Name that Baby: Choosing a name for your child can be an emotional time, especially if you want to name after a loved one. If you don’t know where to start, get some baby-naming books (or search the internet) and sit down together to discuss which names you like. Use this time to relax and have fun!

Here you can watch as Laila Ali shares her favorite maternity tips for mom and dad with Maggie Rodriguez.

Laila Ali on Pregnancy

Pregnancy check-ups: Stop whining and count your blessings

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The Wall Street Journal has a forum called The Juggle: On choices and tradeoffs people make as they juggle work and family. In a recent post, one woman who just entered her third trimester complains about the hardships of juggling work and frequent doctor appointments (once every two weeks… is that really so frequent?). Apparently her doctor told her that these visits are probably not necessary, “but rules were rules.”

In addition to having to take off time from work in middle of the day, she has to commute for an hour to get to the doctor’s office, “hauling my pregnant self through public transit,” and coordinate schedules with her “incredibly supportive husband” who accompanies her to all her appointments. She realizes that soon she’ll be leaving work for an extended period of time and just wants to be able to “focus on my job” while she still can.

What I found interesting, though, were all the comments (47 so far). I tend to agree with those who’s sympathy levels are low for this unfortunate mom to be. I mean really, if the “excitement and anticipation of welcoming a new person into the world is building,” as she claims, then what is she kvetching about? Doctors visits are part of the program and she should try to be grateful for the care she’s receiving. She should also be glad that her husband can and does keep her company at her doctor visits. She should be happy that she’s experiencing a healthy normal pregnancy.

Here’s a sampling of what other women have to say:

…life does not revolve around work. When you got pregnant, your life already changed and you already lost the right to focus on your job first. This is what life is all about so relish these moments of anticipation that you have!

…This is when it really helps to have the doctor’s office near work… Annoying though the appointments are, it is a good thing for the health team to be able to catch any issues early.

…I go to a mixed midwife-OBGyn practice and am seen by the midwife group… the midwives don’t take call (don’t deliver babies, don’t assist on procedures, don’t do anything outside the practice) on the days they have scheduled appointments. So far, that has meant no waiting, an office that runs efficiently and professionally.

…the theme I see is essentially denial that Everything Is Going to Change. It’s understandable to feel a little desperation to preserve your professional identity. But bending over backwards is a disservice to everyone in the workplace. We need to stop apologizing for having lives… By choosing the pregnancy, you have already made the decision to alter your work availability. Own the decision, and be grateful that you’re a) fertile and b) not on bedrest.

And the most compelling reason for a woman with a natural, normal pregnancy to stop whining and get on with life:

For those of you who got pregnant naturally and now whine about how hard your juggle now is, how about juggling the following:
-dozens of appointments, many of which cannot be scheduled in advance because your body determines the timing
-injections of drugs that must be kept refrigerated
-two whole-day absences (egg retrieval and retransfer) scheduled mere hours in advance which are non-negotiable regardless of what’s happening at work or at home
-after that, more blood tests and ultrasounds and continued injections for ten weeks

-Followed, in many cases, by failure

…Imagine going through all this… while suffering the disappointment of not being a mommy, while still having to pick up the slack for your colleagues with children… That is my juggle, repeat fertility treatments, miscarriages, etc. without letting anyone at work find out. I have extreme flexible hours and even so, it’s a challenge. I would DEARLY LOVE to have the problem outlined by the original poster.

New Study Confirms Link between Smoking and SIDS

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If you are planning to get pregnant, or already are pregnant, you know that one of the most important things you can do for your child is to quit smoking. For a while now, doctors have been warning that smoking during pregnancy is likely to increase the risk of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome). But now, a new study provides the most direct evidence yet.

The new study, reported on by Science Daily, appears in the first issue for June of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, a publication of the American Thoracic Society.

“Our results provide some of the most direct evidence to date suggesting that prenatal cigarette smoke exposure can contribute to the destabilizing effects of hypoxia [inadequate oxygenation of the blood] and thermal stress on neonatal breathing,” said Dr. Hasan.

That the effects of second-hand cigarette smoke are damaging is well known. But according to this study, the effects were much more pronounced when a fetus was exposed to cigarette smoked prenatally.

“Our results show that prenatal cigarette smoke exposure compounds the risk by increasing the likelihood of gasp-like respiration and prolonging the time that it takes for neonates to return to normal breathing following hypoxia,” said Dr. Hasan. “These observations provide important evidence of how prenatal cigarette smoke exposure, hypoxic episodes and hyperthermia might place infants at higher risk for SIDS and further support efforts to foster prenatal smoking cessation programs.”

To read the details of this study, please refer to Science Daily: Smoking During Pregnancy Increases Risk of SIDS.

Preparing for Post Pregnancy

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Many pregnant women are extremely busy packing for the hospital, decorating their nursery, and planning their childbirth experience. They don’t give any thought to the period beyond delivery, and how they will handle the stresses of being a new mother. According to Sylvia Brown at About.com, most childbirth preparation classes do not provide future mothers with enough warning about the upheaval that they are about to undergo. The most important thing to remember is that the postpartum period is a time of transition during which we must take care of ourselves. In addition to the stress of childbirth itself, including C-sections, stitching, and long labors, there’s the fatigue that all new mothers need to cope with.

Your body will need time to get back to it’s original state. The first six weeks are a time of healing, re-balancing and recovery. It takes the genital organs from six weeks to two months to return to their original size and function. The pregnancy hormone relaxin, which increases the size and elasticity of connective tissues, will remain in a new mothers body for up to five months. This is why a new mother’s joints are so fragile.  Prolactin, the hormone which produces milk in breastfeeding mothers, has a similar effect. In 66 percent of women, the vertical abdominal muscles have separated and take at least six weeks to heal.  Although you may be anxious to loose weight and get back into shape, your body needs rest and you should consult your doctor before beginning any exercise routines.

Due to the enormous hormonal upheaval of a new mother’s body, 80 percent of women will experience the “baby blues.” The most common symptoms are tears, often for no apparent reason, mood swings, hypersensitivity, difficulty in concentrating, anxiety, feelings of discouragement and vulnerability, restless sleep patterns. This is not an illness and can be treated with rest and support.  However, postnatal depression is a psychiatric illness which affects one in ten new mothers and must be treated with medication and therapy.

Sylvia Brown has three tips for overcoming fatigue.  Theoretically they should work wonders, but unless you have live-in help or a mother around the corner, I don’t know many women who can indulge in this advice. But here they are anyway, maybe you can find a way to incorporate some of them.

  1. Planning ahead before the baby’s birth — Who will help with household chores? Who will take care of the older children? Who will you be able to leave the baby with to get out of the house for a short break? ask your friends for baby-sitting or housekeeping help as a baby gift. Or maybe for someone to shop, cook a meal and wash the dishes for you.
  2. Sleep whenever you can (ideally, you should have two naps a day in the first few weeks). If the baby is napping, drop everything and sleep as well. Nothing is more important than your rest.
  3. Recreation: get out of the house, do some sort of “adult” activity each day, even for 45 minutes. You’ll be amazed at how this can lift your spirits.

“Ms. What to Expect” gets a New Look

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Most pregnant woman and new mothers are familiar with the face of “What to Expect when You’re Expecting.” She sits calmly in her rocking chair, wearing a dowdy pink dress. Her shoes and hairstyle are plain and unassuming. She’s big. She’s tired. Ah yes, there she is, as we are used to knowing her:

But she looks different in the just-released fourth edition of “What to Expect When You’re Expecting.” Now she’s cool, with long hair and a sleeker silhouette. She definitely looks like she’s got more energy these days. Then again, she also doesn’t look like she’s over-due either:

Pantagraph.com reports: “Pregnant woman erectus — she’s finally off that rocking chair,” quips Heidi Murkoff, author of the hugely successful series she began with her late mother and sister a quarter-century ago. “It was definitely time for a positive spin.”

According to the author, this new edition, largely rewritten, is a chance to present a version that’s “more reassuring, more positive, more empathetic than ever.” That’s good news for women who found the older version to be alarming, packed with a little too much information. Some have called it “What to Freak Out About When You’re Expecting.”

Despite such criticism, the book remains a classic. “It’s a responsible book with good information,” says Dr. Robert Resnik, a perinatologist at the University of California, San Diego, “It is what it is. If it scares you, maybe you shouldn’t be reading it!”

But for the fans of “What to Expect,” there’s not just the new and improved book edition. Now there’s WhatToExpect.com, Murkoff’s 3-year-old site, which the publishers say is the second-biggest parenting site after BabyCenter. The Internet is particularly suited for women going through pregnancy: “It’s the most female invention to come along. You put the word out. Someone responds. You say, thanks, you saved my life. Men don’t communicate like that!”

Breast milk is for babies… right?

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In “Sour Attitudes toward Breast Milk,” Julie’s Health Club explores why we find the idea of anyone except babies drinking breast milk to be repulsive, but totally normal for people of all ages to drink the milk of cows, sheep, and goats. “Why are we so freaked out by breast milk?” she askes. Good question.

Japan’s drinkable cheese has been called an “exciting new beverage concept,” but it’s nothing compared to this French delicacy I recently thought I found on the Internet: gourmet cheese crafted from human breast milk.

Though I’ve breast-fed two children, my reflexive reaction—yuck!—was probably similar to yours. And when I e-mailed the “breast-milk cheese” link to friends, reactions included “OMG!” and “That’s the most disgusting subject line I’ve seen in a long time.”

But as one Health Clubber mentioned, imagine the marketing potential: Organic grass-fed human breast-milk cheese could be the ultimate Whole Foods product, as long as the women aren’t housed on factory farms or given artificial hormones to increase milk production and everything is certified.

Breast milk, meanwhile, is nature’s perfect functional food, something the formula industry keeps trying in vain to replicate. It’s not just intensely rich in antibodies, vitamins and other nutrients; it also has been shown to boost a baby’s intelligence, help prevent infections and possibly help fight asthma, obesity and high cholesterol.

Moreover, breast milk contains the precise kinds and amounts of fats and proteins our bodies need, making it inherently more digestible and nutritious than cow’s milk.

Sadly, just when I started to think Mama’s Num Num Cheese was a brilliant idea, I learned the Web site was fictitious.

I should have known. Breast milk is so obviously for infants, not adults.

….

But it is a little strange that most of us consider cow’s milk to be “normal,” and breast milk “disgusting.” Those who are a little more open-minded, meanwhile, such as Samantha Mix, 40, of Batavia, have discovered that scrambled eggs can have a velvety quality.

“I am sure the high and pure quality of the milk fat is what makes the eggs velvety and light as a feather,” said Mix, who has nursed two children and likes to add her own breast milk to scrambled eggs. She also plans to comb garage sales this summer to find a yogurt maker. Her plan is to use up the three gallons of breast milk she has in the freezer.

I don’t know about you, but I guess I’m just not that progressive.  Sure, I breastfed my daughter until she was two and now I’m breastfeeding my son.  But the thought of eating yogurt made out of my own breast milk is just… well… disgusting.

Then there’s the “America’s Next Top Model” contestant who drank her own breast milk. She’d been pumping in order to keep her supply flowing so she could continue feeding her infant daughter when she returned home from the show.  “I drank my breast milk only during audition week because I did not want to waste it after putting all my effort into making and extracting it. Dumping milk just seems wrong,” Claire said, adding that at one point she was drinking two or three glasses of breast milk a day. “A mother’s milk is like liquid gold, so I also wanted the nutritional value back and to keep my immunity up.”

To each his own!

Preparing for a Healthy Pregnancy: Proper Nutrition is vital

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You can start preparing your body for pregnancy now, even if you are not thinking about starting a family for another few months or even years.  To ensure that you and your baby have the best chance at good health, take a few extra steps to prepare for this important phase in advance. In today’s health-conscious society, you have more choices than ever when it comes to proper nutrition.

Following are five healthy habits to consider before attempting to conceive, as reported by Sally Watts at Charleston.net.

Fat can be good!  According to Dr. Craig Koniver, owner of Primary Plus Family Medicine and founder of The Center for Organic Medicine in Charleston, most with women of childbearing age do not consume enough healthy fat. Healthy omega-3 fats can be found in fatty fish, such as salmon or sardines, as well as foods that contain flax. You can control your omega-3 intake with fish oil and/or flax-seed oil.

Take your vitamins!  It is critical that you take a balanced prenatal multivitamin that contains folic acid, as well as other healthy minerals. Folic acid is vital to fetal development and guards against several congenital malformations. Dr. Koniver also suggests taking selenium, a trace mineral crucial for proper immune system and thyroid function.

Keep the fruits and veges coming!  You should try to consume as many organic fruits and vegetables as possible. Avoiding pesticides and fungicides will help maintain the delicate hormone balance during pregnancy, says Dr. Koniver.

Keep refilling that glass of water! To keep all body systems running smoothly, it’s important to stay hydrated.  A woman’s total blood volume increases by 20 percent or more during pregnancy, and hydration is critical in maintaining health.  According to the March of Dimes, lack of proper hydration can trigger preterm contractions.

Cut back on coffee!  The March of Dimes also suggests women cut back on caffeine before they become pregnant, as caffeine has been linked to miscarriage in studies. For those with a slight caffeine addiction, it’s better to kick the habit before pregnancy begins so you can avoid the struggle once you conceive.

Benefits of Breastfeeding

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We all know that breast milk is the ideal food source for young babies. What some people may not realize is that breastfeeding has benefits for the mother and for society as well!

Here are some of the many benefits of breastfeeding, from WomensHealth.gov:

BENEFITS FOR BABY:

  • Breast milk is the most complete form of nutrition for infants. A mother’s milk has just the right amount of fat, sugar, water, and protein that is needed for a baby’s growth and development. Most babies find it easier to digest breast milk than they do formula.
  • As a result, breastfed infants grow exactly the way they should. They tend to gain less unnecessary weight and to be leaner. This may result in being less overweight later in life.
  • Premature babies do better when breastfed compared to premature babies who are fed formula.
  • Breastfed babies score slightly higher on IQ tests, especially babies who were born pre-maturely.

BENEFITS FOR MOM:

  • Nursing uses up extra calories, making it easier to lose the pounds of pregnancy. It also helps the uterus to get back to its original size and lessens any bleeding a woman may have after giving birth.
  • Breastfeeding, especially exclusive breastfeeding (no supplementing with formula), delays the return of normal ovulation and menstrual cycles. (However, you should still talk with your doctor or nurse about birth control choices.)
  • Breastfeeding lowers the risk of breast and ovarian cancers, and possibly the risk of hip fractures and osteoporosis after menopause.
  • Breastfeeding makes your life easier. It saves time and money. You do not have to purchase, measure, and mix formula. There are no bottles to warm in the middle of the night!
  • A mother can give her baby immediate satisfaction by providing her breast milk when her baby is hungry.
  • Breastfeeding requires a mother to take some quiet relaxed time for herself and her baby.
  • Breastfeeding can help a mother to bond with her baby. Physical contact is important to newborns and can help them feel more secure, warm and comforted.
  • Breastfeeding mothers may have increased self-confidence and feelings of closeness and bonding with their infants.

BENEFITS FOR SOCIETY:

  • Breastfeeding saves on health care costs. Total medical care costs for the nation are lower for fully breastfed infants than never-breastfed infants since breastfed infants typically need fewer sick care visits, prescriptions, and hospitalizations.
  • Breastfeeding contributes to a more productive workforce. Breastfeeding mothers miss less work, as their infants are sick less often. Employer medical costs also are lower and employee productivity is higher.
  • Breastfeeding is better for our environment because there is less trash and plastic waste compared to that produced by formula cans and bottle supplies.

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